Statoil operates several producing offshore licenses in Norway, and its production in the Halten Nordland area is based on floating production, storage and offloading units (FPSOs). The sea bed reservoir is connected to the additional process equipment and export facilities by means of flexible riser pipes. The pipes consist of complicated structures of reinforced steel and polymers. The flexible riser pipes, which Statoil use and which have been used by the offshore industry for decades, involve reliable and advanced technology. Nonetheless, Statoil has a significant need of ongoing maintenance, recording and analysis of pipe states, requiring a
dedicated database for the storing of all information in one place.

Surveillance is Statoil’s guarantee for stable and safe operations 

In 2000, FORCE Technology concluded a service agreement with Technip, the producer of Statoil’s pipes. Under the agreement, FORCE Technology has developed an integrity database customised to the needs of Statoil and Technip with regard to ensuring riser pipe integrity. In 2004, a new field was integrated into the database, completing its design and dual focus of annual status reporting and safe storage of key data for riser pipe reassessment purposes.

The agreement is up for renewal in 2005 with FORCE Technology further developing and operating the integrity database which contains records and data on pipe design and production, including information about the pipe construction and operational limitations. Registration and storage is also performed of daily pipe operations data. The pipes are inspected regularly and the results stored in the database.

Technip regularly reviews the database information. If it detects even a slight deviation between operating conditions, original design parameters and the latest knowledge about design and operations of flexible riser pipes, Statoil can quickly carry out the necessary adjustments. Thus, all 47 pipes continiously fulfil the requirement of safe and stable operations, and since any production downtime runs into a six digit figure, reliable operations are a key factor for Statoil.

If the operations conditions for flexible riser pipes change, Statoil has immediate access to all the details needed to perform a qualified reassessment of the riser pipes. Thus, the database represents an
irreplaceable tool for Statoil.

An experienced partner with a comprehensive integrity management programme

FORCE Technology has several years of experience in advising on and serving offshore industry companies. Our broad spectrum of services enables us to assist this sector in various ways, including planning and performing inspection and maintenance programmes for e.g. offshore and pipelines, and materials and corrosion technology, inspection, structural analysis and structural life-time calculations.